OBITUARY

Janice Cohen

October 17, 1931 – June 28, 2018

Janice Cohen Eulogy
Sarah Imeinu. Sarah, Abraham’s wife, was the first Matriarch of the Jewish people. Tradition ascribes to her great power and influence:
1. She enculturated people into Jewish tradition, bringing them under the wings of the Shekhina (Divine Presence).
2. Thru her, barren women became pregnant, sick people were healed, deaf people gained hearing, and blind people were given sight.
3. And thru Sarah, Isaac was born, then Jacob, then 12 tribes, and we we, the Jewish people, stand as the present link in that chain, tracing our lineage back to Sarah, our Mother.
Matriarch
Peter: matriarch of the family. She ran the day to day operations and long-term planning. She organized vacations & made sure to be present at athletic events, performanace – anything with the kids or grandkids. & She made Harold feel that he had a part in it.

Janice (Samuelson) Cohen of Boca Raton, FL, formerly of Salem and Swampscott, MA, entered into rest on June 28, 2018. Born and raised in College Corner, Indiana, she was the daughter of the late Loren and Florence (Beckman) Samuelson. She was the beloved wife of Harold Cohen for 65 years. Together they built a beautiful family and a successful family business, Somerville Lumber. Janice was the matriarch of the extended Somerville Lumber family; from company picnics to family events or grants from the Cohen Foundation to Somerville employees, Janice was always deeply involved.
Throughout her life, Janice was an active volunteer and leader in the North Shore community. During the 1960’s and 1970’s she was the president of The Temple Israel Sisterhood, ORT and the PTA of the Swampscott school system. She was philanthropic to numerous charities, including the Juvenile AIDs Foundation and Israel Bonds where she remained active through this past year. Through the Cohen Foundation, she helped to fund the educations of students near and far, extending from the greater Boston area to Whitwell, Tennessee.

A funeral service for Janice will be held on Sunday, July 1, 2018 at 10:00 a.m at Congregation Shirat Hayam, 55 Atlantic Ave., SWAMPSCOTT. Interment will follow at Congregation Shirat Hayam Cemetery, Temple Israel Section, Lowell St., PEABODY. Relatives and friends are invited to gather immediately following interment at the Village at Vinnin Square Clubhouse in SALEM, MA. Shiva will also be observed on Monday, July 2, from 4:00 - 8:00 p.m. at the home of Beth and Peter Shribman. Contributions in her memory may be made to: The Multiple Sclerosis Foundation, National Headquarters, 6520 N. Andrews Ave Fort Lauderdale, FL 33309-2132, https://msfocus.org/Donate.aspx or to The Mass General Fund, Mass General Development Office, 125 Nashua Street, Suite 540 Boston, MA 02114-1101, https://giving.massgeneral.org/mgh-fund/donate/.

For more information or to register in the online guestbook, please visit www.stanetskyhymansonsalem.com.

Steve Williams

June 30, 2018

Harold you are in our thoughts and prayers she was a beautiful person and will be remembered by all Somerville Lumber employees.

Peter Cohen

June 29, 2018

I am so saddened to hear of Janice's passing. I had been thinking about her recently was planning to make a visit the next time I was back in the area. Janice holds a very dear place in my heart. As a child the Cohen's were neighbors and I would come by and visit with her. She was one of those adults that treated kids in a way that made you feel like they were truly your friend and had an authentic and genuinely interested quality of interacting. Her memory will remain with me forever.

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